Bangkok Post

Govt blames increased wealth for traffic

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Thais earning more money is one of the key factors resulting in Bangkok being rated among the world’s worst cities for traffic, says Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon.

He said people who are more wealthy can afford to buy more cars.

Gen Prawit, who chairs the government committee to solve traffic problems, said another key factor is that the availabili­ty of roads has been reduced due to constructi­on of the mass-transit system, resulting in traffic problems in Bangkok. The deputy premier said new traffic regulation­s will be enforced to solve the problems.

On Monday, the INRIX Global Traffic Scorecard rated Bangkok the 12th most congested of all cities, considerab­ly worse than in 2015 when it placed 30th.

Bangkok drivers spent an average 64.1 hours a year in traffic jams, it said.

This was just above Caracas and Mexico City, both known for horrendous traffic, which improved from near the top of the list in the 2015 rankings.

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